Becoming Clove

A New Fan

My alarm clock woke me up with a loud, obnoxious ring.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm getting up," I mumbled sleepily. Ugh. School.

I started to roll over in my bed when suddenly I froze, gripped by a certain thought. Jenna.

Was she ok? Was she still acting weird? And had she finished the Hunger Games?

Suddenly I wasn't tired anymore. I leapt out of bed, and pulled on my school skirt and top, keeping my eye on the clock the whole time.

I couldn't wait to get to see Jenna and ask her what she thought of the Hunger Games. I gulped down my cereal, brushed my hair and grabbed my bag as I sped out the door.

"Bye, mum!" I called as I rushed down the path. I was so excited I couldn't wait to say goodbye properly.

I walked to the bus stop and waited impatiently. Just as I was pulling out my phone to check the time, I heard a honk of the bus. I quickly climbed into the bus and sat down in my usual seat beside Jenna.

"Hi," I said. I tried not to sound too hyper-actively excited.

' I finished HG," she said quickly. "So I now I need Catching Fire."

"Wow, you finished a book that quickly?" I asked in surprise. Jenna was not a fast reader.

In fact, she rarely read books but preferred magazines. She said they were easier to read, and more entertaining. I disagreed with her there. Books were WAY better than stupid magazines. I mean, who wants to know how to curl your eyelashes or the latest celebrity scandal?

Jenna rolled her eyes, but didn't make a rude retort as she normally would. Weird.

"So, have you got it?" she asked impatiently.

"I almost forgot it," I said as I handed it over. "I was in such a hurry."

I waited for Jenna to ask why I was hurrying, but she didn't reply. I looked over to see what was wrong. It wasn't like Jenna to ignore me. Normally she'd be trying to drag why I was in such a hurry out of me.

Jenna had opened Catching Fire and was feverishly reading the pages, her eyes moving like clockwork. I stared in disbelief as her fingers flipped over the page and continued reading.

After ten minutes, I couldn't take it any more. I lent over and waved my hand in her face.

"Earth to Jenna," I teased. I knew from experience how annoying this was, so I was expecting Jenna to look up and get mad. Or at the very least, irritated.

But Jenna didn't glance up from her book at all. I sighed. Looked like nothing could tear her away from that book. I leaned back into my seat and settled in for the silent ride to school.

The bus ride seemed to take forever. I knew it was only about half an hour, but it felt like hours and hours. As the bus slowed to a stop, I turned to Jenna.

"We're here," I said, pointing outside the window.

She nodded, and snapped the book shut. Together we walked off the bus as we did every day, but today it just felt wrong. For one thing, Jenna wasn't talking. Normally she chats away at a million miles an hour, but today she was silent. 

"Jenna!" Sophie squealed, rushing over to us. I restrained myself from rolling my eyes. Sophie was possibly the most annoying person in our grade. She desperately adored Jenna. Who didn’t?

"Hi, Sophie," Jenna said casually. "What's up?"

"Not much, just so excited to be chatting with you!" Sophie said enthusiastically. I marvelled how so many people liked Jenna so much. Why weren't they ever that eager to chat to me?